Brent largely steady as supply disruption concerns grow
The front-month ICE Brent contract has lost $0.14/bbl on the day, to trade at $97.68/bbl at 09.00 GMT.
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Upward pressure:
Brent crude’s price has held largely steady amid supply disruption concerns.
The US Central Command (CENTCOM) has been striking Iran for 13 consecutive days, while Tehran has conducted further rounds of retaliatory attacks on US allies in the Gulf.
“Further escalation in the Persian Gulf and fears of a widening conflict are putting a significant amount of oil supply at risk,” two analysts from ING Bank noted.
The Red Sea has also become a major point of concern for the oil market after Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi militants struck two Saudi Arabian crude oil tankers yesterday.
“Houthi attacks on Saudi vessels in the Red Sea have the potential to widen this conflict, leading to further escalation,” ING Bank’s analysts said.
Downward pressure:
An unexpected increase in US crude stocks has put some downward pressure on Brent’s price this week.
US crude oil inventories gained by 2 million bbls to 411.7 million bbls in the week ending 17 July, according to data from the US Energy Information Administration (EIA).
The American Petroleum Institute (API) reported a slightly higher inventory rise of 2.6 million bbls during the same week.
A build in US crude stocks can indicate lower demand for oil.
By Aparupa Mazumder
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